Meeting documents
West Wirral Area Forum
Tuesday, 3rd July 2007
Present
In the Chair
Geoffrey Watt
Ward Councillor
DM Elderton, JE Green
Community Representatives
Gary Evans, Ian McKellar, Cynthia Radford
Older People's Parliament Representative
Eddie Boult
Lead Officer
Jim Wilkie (Deputy Chief Executive/Director of Corporate Services)
Area Service Co-ordinator
Tracey Smith
Wirral Primary Care Trust
Glenn Coleman, Cathy Gritzner
Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Cathy Johnson
Merseyside Police
Inspector John Smith
Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service
Paul Gibson
Council Officers
Lucy Pritchard (Anti-social Behaviour Team), Mark Smith (Head of Service, Streetscene and Waste), Mark Traynor (Streetscene Manager)
Apologies
Cllr Gerry Ellis, Cllr J Hale
Index to Minutes
- Minute 1 - WELCOME, INTRODUCTIONS AND APOLOGIES
- Minute 2 - MINUTES AND MATTERS ARISING
- Minute 3 - AREA CO-ORDINATOR'S REPORT • Minutes of last meeting and matters arising • Area Plan update
- Minute 4 - OLDER PEOPLE'S PARLIAMENT
- Minute 5 - PUBLIC QUESTION TIME
- Minute 6 - POLICE: PRESENTATION ON ROLE, BEAT AND STRUCTURES
- Minute 7 - WIRRAL HOSPITAL TRUST ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY PRESENTATION
- Minute 8 - PARTNER UPDATES • Police. • Wirral Primary Care Trust • Fire & Rescue Service • Community Safety Department
- Minute 9 - FUTURE MEETINGS
- Minute 10 - ANY OTHER BUSINESS
Minute 1 - WELCOME, INTRODUCTIONS AND APOLOGIES
Minute Text :
Councillor Watt conveyed the Chairman's (Councillor Ellis) apologies (other apologies as shown above) and welcomed approximately 40 members of the public. The members of the Forum and the officers introduced themselves to the meeting.
Minute 2 - MINUTES AND MATTERS ARISING
Minute Text :
The minutes of the previous meeting, held on 13 February 2007, which had been circulated as part of the Area Co-ordinator’s report, were accepted as a correct record.
Minute 3 - AREA CO-ORDINATOR'S REPORT • Minutes of last meeting and matters arising • Area Plan update
Minute Text :
Tracey Smith, Area Co-ordinator, presented a comprehensive report which consisted of the following:
Section 1: Minutes of the previous meeting.
Section 2: Local updates on various issues under the following headings:
(a) Safe and stronger communities;
(b) Healthy communities and older people;
(c) Children and young people, including the availability of funding for Wirral teenagers through the Youth Capital Fund and the Youth Opportunities Fund;
(d) Economic development and enterprise;
(e) Cross-cutting issues.
Section 3: Details of schemes funded through the Area Forum and of the progress that they were making. The next meeting of the Community Initiatives Fund assessment panel would be held the following week.
Section 4: Update on the Local Area Plan. The updated Plan had been produced and a few copies were available for distribution at the meeting. As before, it explained the role of the Area Forum, a detailed profile of the area with data and statistics and an area action plan that was in line with the Local Area Agreement.
Section 5: Update on Streetscene and waste issues, including reference to the current consultation on residents parking zones.
Section 6: Update on equalities and diversity.
In relation to the Area Plan, Tony Garrett (Transport Users Group), expressed concern that the references to transport issues had been standardised for all area plans and that public transport appeared not to be an issue for the Hoylake and West Kirby area. He asked for Merseytravel to be represented at meetings of the Forum.
Tracey Smith replied that the aims of the Transport Users Group were likely to be better met through the Local Transport Plan. The Area Plan could only deal with those issues specific to the area that might realistically be addressed, such as roads and pavements and road safety, and it was felt that within the area there were good transport links to health services.
Minute Decision :
Resolved - That Tracey Smith be thanked for her report.
Minute 4 - OLDER PEOPLE'S PARLIAMENT
Minute Text :
Eddie Boult, representative of the Older People's Parliament, provided a brief description of its activities. He explained that Wirral had a greater number than the national average of people of pensionable age. They had concerns about a number of issues, but often felt left out of democratic and consultative processes. They were keen to be involved and hoped to influence how expenditure on services for older people was implemented. Amongst the issues that it had recently discussed were post office closures, the availability of public toilets, keep fit facilities, community care, parking at Arrowe Park Hospital - they were involved in negotiations with the Trust on that matter - and how older people might assist in Capital of Culture activities.
Mr Boult was thanked for his report.
Minute 5 - PUBLIC QUESTION TIME
Minute Text :
Qu: When was the proposed fixed penalty for dog-fouling likely to be introduced?
A: In the near future.
Qu: Mr Lynch asked for action to be taken in respect of the parking problems in his road (a cul-de-sac). Despite the fact that cars were parked on both sides of the road and some down the centre, the traffic wardens had indicated that they could not get involved and the view expressed by a Community Support Officer was that obstruction only occurred when someone wanted to pass.
A: Councillor Watt referred to the current consultation exercise in respect of resident parking schemes (Mr Lynch pointed out that he had been urged to vote against such schemes) and his comments would be taken into account. Councillor Green felt that there surely ought to be regulations to prevent the particular situation in Mr Lynch's road. Inspector Smith undertook to look into the matter (as did Councillor Green) but added that the opinion regarding obstruction was correct.
Qu: Mr W Smith had submitted a question in writing (but was not present) regarding recycling in cemeteries - he had been provided with a written answer.
Qu: Sandra Wall referred to the Home from Hospital scheme, which provided a few days' help with simple jobs, for people following their release from hospital. The scheme required a small amount of funding and she wondered if the health authority or the Local Authority could assist.
A: Councillor Green stated that one of the Council's targets was to reduce re-admissions to hospital and such a scheme might contribute to that. He asked Mr Wilkie to look into the matter. Cathy Gritzner felt that the PCT would wish to support any innovative scheme to free hospital beds.
Qu: Sandra Wall referred to an issue raised by the Older People's Parliament, namely, why there were still many mixed-sex wards.
A: Cathy Johnson replied that the Hospital currently operated single-sex bays, but provision was being made in its capital programme to ensure that single-sex rooms could be provided over the next five years. However, a member of the public referred to a recent incident in Ward 32 (Coronary Care), where female patients had been subjected to the erratic behaviour of a male patient. Cathy Johnson emphasised the importance of maintaining the privacy and dignity of patients, and, as each was discharged, they would be provided with a questionnaire to seek their views on how well they were treated. There were some problems because of the limited number of intensive care beds, where it was more difficult to be flexible in their allocation. However, she would take note of the comments.
Qu: Mr Tony Garrett referred to the proposed refurbishment of West Kirby Station, where the ownership issue appeared still not to have been resolved.
A: Jim Wilkie replied that the issue related to the ownership of the shops. The owners had been traced and the Council was trying to exert pressure on them to effect improvements, but it had no statutory powers unless the premises could be proved to be in a "ruinous and dilapidated" state. Councillor Elderton added that some funding had been obtained for health and safety work and painting in the run-up to The Open, but the owners seemed not prepared to take any action; he understood, however, that the lessees had full repair leases.
Qu: Mr Garrett referred to the issue of access to and from Meols Station for disabled passengers.
A: Jim Wilkie stated that Mark Smith would take the matter up with Merseytravel.
Qu: When will repairs to the retaining wall of the Marine Lake be carried out?
A: Mark Smith stated that his department had been looking at that matter and he would speak to the enquirer.
Qu: Having counted eleven wheelie bins on the pavement in St Bridget's Lane, can I ask why so many are necessary when the adjacent properties have no gardens?
A: Mark Smith stated that his department specifically asked residents not to create an obstruction. Whilst the whole of the Borough was now on the alternate weekly collection system, there was still a need to review provision to ensure that it was reasonable in particular circumstances. He would speak to the residents about that specific problem.
Qu: As a resident of a block of 27 flats, and being used to having blue bag collections, would we have to have grey bins when there was no room for them?
A: Mark Smith stated that the blue bag system was one of a number of transitional issues that would be part of the review of provision.
Qu: Why were there no longer blue skips available in the vicinity for recyclable materials (Councillor Elderton added that he was not aware that they were being phased out)?
A: Mark Smith undertook to look into that matter.
Qu: Why were there still problems in getting through to Streetscene (the Chair added that he had received many complaints about that problem)?
A: Jim Wilkie replied that Mark Smith and his colleagues were looking into that matter.
Qu: Ken Medlock stated that for his block of 20 apartments residents had accepted a lower number of grey bins, but they were having problems with retrieving their brown bins after they had been emptied. He also had had problems getting through to Streetscene, with one answer from 43 attempts, after which he received no return call, nor any reply to a subsequent letter.
A: Mark Smith replied that there had been huge increase in calls, and the performance of the Call Centre was being monitored, and there had, in fact, been a recent improvement in performance.
Qu. Sandra Wall stated that she had sent an e-mail to Streetscene, asking for a second grey bin but had so far only received acknowledgements.
Qu: Why was the logging of calls so confusing - having been told that my call was ranked number 31, then 23, then 32, then 42, I gave up?
A: Mark Smith stated that there were some technical issues in respect of the logging system, though the ranking of calls was only intended as a guide. The problem was being looked into.
Qu: What action could be taken about cars parked on both pavements at the top of Village Road?
A: The Chair stated that he had taken that up with the police, but the problem kept recurring. Inspector Smith agreed with that - he would look into the possibility of issuing tickets, but added that it was not an offence to park on a footpath. Mark Smith undertook to look into that aspect of the problem.
Qu: Could the lavatories near to the children's play area at Ashton Park be opened?
A: One of the Friends of Ashton Park replied that he would look into the matter.
Qu: A resident of Caldy Road complained about the speed of traffic, which often exceeded 50 mph.
A: Councillor Watt stated that the speed trailer had often been deployed there. Councillor Green added that meetings had been undertaken with Highways staff, the local school and residents, but there was a need to ensure that whatever action was taken avoided any knock-on effects elsewhere. Speed humps were not an option because it was a designated route for emergency vehicles.
A member of the public commented that the traffic situation in the area was unlikely to improve, with bus services struggling to get through roads that were congested with parked cars - examples were given of the 138 service via Darmonds Green and the problem for buses outside West Kirby Primary School.
Minute 6 - POLICE: PRESENTATION ON ROLE, BEAT AND STRUCTURES
Minute Text :
Inspector Smith gave a detailed presentation on the structure of the Police Service in Wirral. Wirral was one of six basic command units (BCUs) in Merseyside (Unit A). It was headed by a Chief Superintendent and divided into eight neighbourhoods, each of which was led by an Inspector (Hoylake and West Kirby was neighbourhood No. 3). Under him were three officers - a Sergeant based in Hoylake and one Constable for each Ward. They were supported by nine TSOs (formerly CSOs), though their powers were limited. All those officers were primarily concerned with quality of life issues. Whilst those numbers appeared small, Wirral had in fact some 600 police officers and 185 support staff who fulfilled a variety of roles to ensure that each area was adequately policed. That was done through four patrol hubs - Hoylake and West Kirby were covered from the station at Upton. The expectation was that those officers would attend emergencies within ten minutes from the logging of a call.
The Hoylake and West Kirby area was generally regarded as a quiet one. It had a population of 32,000, of which 9,000 were over 60 and 3,000 were under 16. The main problems came from undesirable elements from outside of the area, and it was the view that young people resident in the area congregated together for protection from those elements. From regular surveys, the key issues of concern amongst the public were the behaviour of young people, misuse of alcohol and speeding.
With regard to the nature of policing, Inspector Smith stated that the job had changed considerably, with much emphasis currently on community engagement, listening to what the public told them and endeavouring to direct resources accordingly. The aim was to move from a reactive to a more proactive service. Part of the communication arrangements with the public was a regular circulation by e-mail to any resident who had asked to be included - the information disseminated included warnings of particular problems, such as conmen operating in the area. Other customer care arrangements included operating the Victim of Crime Code, whereby the victims were kept informed of progress, the National Quality of Service commitment, the establishment of neighbourhood action groups and the Customer Care Desk. Wirral BCU had been recognised as the best in the country for its customer care.
With regard to the crime rate in the area, it was low, but most crimes that did occur were avoidable, such as thefts of and from cars and bicycles. Even with the busy night-time economy, there was little violence. There was some anti-social behaviour, particularly around the West Kirby Concourse, but extra officers had been drafted in when necessary to tackle it, and action had also been taken, in the light of intelligence, to deter known troublemakers from coming in by train from another area. An alcohol-free zone operated in the area, but it had to be understood that an offence only occurred if a police officer asked an individual to desist and they failed to do so. As indicated earlier in the meeting, parking was also a general issue of concern, but the police now did not have the authority to enforce parking legislation.
Inspector Smith concluded by urging anyone that was interested to contact him by e-mail (or other means, if necessary), his address being jonathan.q.smith@merseyside.police.uk.
Ian McKellar commended Inspector Smith on the action taken in liaison with the Transport Police, and asked whether the system of Special Constables was still in operation. Inspector Smith replied that, whilst the Force did not specifically rely on them (it had to be recognised that they had other commitments), they were welcome volunteers and there were currently 20 regular Specials operating in Wirral.
A member of the public stated that she was involved with a Neighbourhood Action Group and understood that the original intention was that it should meet every 3/4 months; however, hers had not met for a while. Inspector Smith accepted that the gap since the last meeting had been too long - the last but one had been overtaken by The Open and it had been five months since the last one. He hoped that more regular meetings could resume as soon as possible.
Minute Decision :
Resolved - That Inspector Smith be thanked for his most informative presentation.
Minute 7 - WIRRAL HOSPITAL TRUST ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY PRESENTATION
Minute Text :
Cathy Johnson stated that Wirral Hospital Trust had now achieved Foundation Trust status, and its new title was the Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. The Trust would be responsible for the services based at Arrowe Park and Clatterbridge, together with some services in the community. Arrowe Park currently had some 900 beds and dealt with the more acute cases; Clatterbridge had approximately 200, and dealt with planned admissions and rehabilitation. The Trust served a population of approximately 400,000 (because it included the areas of Ellesmere Port and Neston). Annually, it dealt with 107,000 in-patient episodes and 329,000 out-patient episodes; 90,000 people attended A&E. It had an annual budget of £234m, had 6,000 staff, and its catering service provided 3.3m meals.
The changes in the organisation were governed by the document "A Change for the Better". The reasons for the changes were that people wanted care closer to home. Hospitals would take care of the acutely ill, but changes in technology were helping to provide surgery on a day basis, therefore allowing earlier discharges. Patients had a choice, via their GPs, as to where they went for treatment, and the aim was to achieve a maximum waiting time of 18 weeks between consulting the GP and referral for hospital treatment. Funding arrangements were being revised to ensure that the money followed the patient.
Cathy Johnson went on to describe how the changes were being implemented. A five-year plan provided for new procedures to ensure that more patients were treated in less time; that there was increased income to invest in services; specialist services would be developed locally, e.g. home dialysis; there would be an additional £10m investment in equipment and facilities, such as scanners; there would be changes to cope with the growth in emergencies and to reduce demand for in-patient beds (for example, the time required for appendix operations was being reduced from a 10-day stay to one day); and, overall, to become more efficient.
It was important that the Trust worked in partnership with the public. Currently, it had a consultation base of some 5,000 members and was aiming to increase that to 22,000. She urged the public to make use of the website; www.wnht.nhs.uk. It was also intended to have regular roadshows to bring services to the attention of the public.
Councillor Green felt that the Trust was right to be proud of its new status. However, he was concerned that a recent report in the press regarding the incidence of MRSA had quoted statistics for Merseyside, but none in respect of Arrowe Park Hospital. Cathy Johnson replied that the figures were in the public domain and she would look into why they had not appeared in the newspaper. She went on to state that there had been no incidents of MRSA in Clatterbridge Hospital. There had been some at Arrowe Park, but the figure was low. Following a recent inspection visit, the hospital was found to be applying best practice. A strategy was in place that dealt separately with staff, patients and the public: every ward had clinical champions from one of the professional groups, and there was extensive training to make sure that everyone adhered to procedures. She undertook to advise Councillor Green about the MRSA statistics.
Mr Stanbury referred to the case of his wife, who had been admitted to hospital with a broken ankle but who had diedas a result of C-difficile. Whilst he was visiting her he had not observed any nurse washing their hands according to C-difficile procedures. He had contacted the author of the article about MRSA and had been told that Arrowe Park had refused to supply the information. He was also concerned about other aspects of the operation of Arrowe Park. On behalf of the Older People's Parliament, he had written to Mr Paul Holt regarding the use of blue bays. He had been told that staff regularly checked the use of them, but in five months he had never seen that. He was also concerned that the smoke-free policy was not being enforced. The Older People's Parliament would continue to press for improvements in relation to the parking areas. Cathy Johnson accepted that smoking outside of the hospital buildings continued to be a problem, which would be addressed. She undertook to contact Mr Holt regarding the parking issues.
Ian McKellar felt that Cathy Johnson's presentation had given a rather rosy picture of the health service but he regularly heard adverse comments that suggested a different picture. He queried whether re-branding the Trust as a University Teaching Hospital would help improve performance in relation to preventative medicine and 'proper doctoringat. Cathy Johnson replied that the new policies would put patients at the centre of care and allow the public to take control of their health services. Cure and health education were equally important elements of the policy.
A member of the public referred to the successful surgery that he and his wife had undergone and went on to ask how the hospital authorities liaised with Social Services. Cathy Johnson replied that, whilst she was not sure how often meetings were held, the Health Services were partners in the Local Area Agreement with the Local Authority and other bodies and certainly it was vital that close liaison with Social Services took place to ensure that proper support was available in assisting transition to and from hospital.
Mr Ken Medlock stated that he had been treated extremely well by the health service but was concerned that he himself had been obliged to go private for a hearing aid, which was expensive but ineffective, and that his wife, who was 92, was being obliged to wait for up to 50 weeks for a hearing aid. As a result, he had written to the Prime Minister and asked whether that was a good example of improved services. He had been assured that money was being put into audiology, but suspected that the service would only be provided to suit the budget. Cathy Gritzner replied that the problem with audiology had been looked at - some 800 patients had been waiting for tests, and therefore a contract had been arranged with BUPA and 780 patients transferred there. It was not true that audiology services were being reduced - in fact, the number of staff had been increased.
A member of the public queried why he had had to wait 2-3 weeks to arrange a blood test at Arrowe Park but managed to obtain a same-day appointment for a blood test and x-ray at Clatterbridge.
Minute Decision :
Resolved - That Cathy Johnson be thanked for her presentation.
Minute 8 - PARTNER UPDATES • Police. • Wirral Primary Care Trust • Fire & Rescue Service • Community Safety Department
Minute Text :
(A) Police - see minute 6 above.
(B) Wirral Primary Care Trust
Cathy Gritzner referred to the increased emphasis on services to assist people to stop smoking, following on from the introduction of the smoke-free legislation on 1 July. Councillor Elderton complained, however, that the first image that many people had of Arrowe Park Hospital was of the smokers standing outside and urged the Trust to get to grips with it. Cathy Gritzner said that she would take the matter up.
(C) Fire and Rescue Service
Paul Gibson reported that he was newly in charge of the Wirral Division (and emphasised that Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service was still regarded as the best authority in the country). Recent activities and initiatives included:
- continuing the programme of home safety checks (anyone who had not requested one was urged to do so);
- Wirral Lifeline, which paid particular attention to those 700+ members of the public identified as being particularly vulnerable;
- the introduction of new safety equipment;
- the adopt-a-block scheme to help tackle high-rise fires;
- measures to reduce grassland fires, in co-operation with schools, the Ranger Service and the Police;
- the involvement of staff from the West Kirby fire station in recent flood relief work elsewhere in the country.
(D) In view of time constraints, Lucy Pritchard, Enforcement Co-ordinator with the Anti-social Behaviour Team, asked any members of the public that wished to do so to contact her after the meeting.
Minute 9 - FUTURE MEETINGS
Minute Text :
The Chairman announced that the next meeting would be held on 31 October at 7.00pm, venue to be confirmed.
Minute 10 - ANY OTHER BUSINESS
Minute Text :
The Chairman accepted two additional items:
(a) Gary Evans advised the Forum about the position of the local Citizens' Advice Bureau. Despite having 35 well trained volunteers, it was understaffed and there were restrictions on funding from the local authority. Currently four staff were working without adequate supervision. In addition to work in the immediate area, the CAB also provided outreach support to the Moreton, Upton and Woodchurch areas. However, reducing hours was not considered to be a viable option, the only realistic one being an increase in funding.
(b) Michael Taylor, Chairman of the Hoylake Cottage Hospital Trust, explained its revised role: the word 'Hospital' was to be dropped from its title to help define its role of providing holistic services for older people. A new nursing unit would provide 60 beds and there would be two centres for day patients suffering from dementia. There was also a sensory garden. He would welcome views from the public on how the Trust might best serve the community.
The Chair closed the meeting at 9.16pm.
(Minutes Published: 5 September 2007)